Auto Edge: The fast lane for new functions

Customers today expect new functions to be delivered to their vehicles quickly and seamlessly. Over-the-air updates (OTAs) are only one part of the solution. With Auto Edge, CARIAD goes one step further: The platform brings software directly into the vehicle, with short throughput times and high performance.

In edge computing, collected data is processed at the edge of a network instead of being sent to a central server. Intelligent data processing takes place close to the sensors or devices that generate the data.

With CARIAD’s Auto Edge platform, applications can run directly in the vehicle while remaining connected to the cloud. The goal: fast decisions without detours through central servers, minimal latency, and maximum security.

Critical applications respond quickly

With the entirely in-house-developed Auto Edge, developers can quickly update software in the field. Customer functions can be flexibly expanded without retrofitting hardware or reloading base software. Critical applications such as parking displays benefit from low latency and high performance. They respond quickly while strict safety and homologation mechanisms protect the system.

Hardly any limitations for developers

“Our Auto Edge platform is based on open standard technologies. This means that developers can implement their ideas with almost no limitations and bring new functionalities to existing vehicles flexibly and efficiently – without retrofitting hardware. Applications created once can be used in both PPE and MEB architectures,” explains Stephan Max, Solution Manager at CARIAD.

Auto Edge is built in three layers:

·       Hardware layer with security mechanisms

·       Software platform as a runtime environment

·       App containers that represent specific use cases

Thanks to the app containers, functions can be provided modularly and adapted to individual countries, for example for charging protocols or new features for energy management.

Use in the digital twin

Among the most important use cases are online services such as electric vehicle (EV) services (e.g., charging or battery management) and the digital twin as a digital representation of the vehicle: It maps the vehicle twice, in the vehicle itself and virtually in the backend.

More than one million vehicles in the Volkswagen Group now use the technology, including around 436,000 from Audi and 65,000 from Porsche. Auto Edge thus demonstrates how software changes in the field can be technically implemented.

A foundation for future developments

Auto Edge solves many of the problems that occur with traditional online services: There are fewer different solutions, no dependence on external providers, and significantly more room for rapid innovation. The platform is not only important for today’s vehicle functions – it also forms the basis for future developments such as the digital twin (Edge Twin) for function development in the backend, improved charging features, or digital services such as using the smartphone as a vehicle key.

With Auto Edge, CARIAD creates the foundation for the next generation of connected vehicles and for a customer experience that continuously evolves.

*AI-generated imagery used for illustrative purposes.